Charles j



(No Model.)

0. J. EA-MES PROGES$ OF REDUGING IRON ORE. No. 404,183. Patented May 28, 1889.,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES J. IEAMES, OF NEWV YORK, N. Y.

PROCESS OF REDUCING IRON ORE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 404,183, dated May 28, 1889.

Application filed January 19, 1889. Serial No. 296,839. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES J. EAMES, a citizen of the United States, residing at New York city, in the State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Process of Reducing Iron Ore; and I hereby declare the following to be a ful clear, and exact description of the same, such as will enable others skilled in the art to practice the invention.

The object of the present invention is to provide a simple and expeditious method of deoxidizing iron ores for the manufacture of wrought-iron, steel, 850., direct from the ore, which will not necessitate the employment of skilled labor or the erection of an expensive plant.

The method, generally stated, may be said to consist in subjecting single strata of granulated and mixed carbon and iron ore to currents of highly-heated carbonic oxide, said strata being from two to four or five inches in thickness arranged upon a permeable carbon strata or bed and preferably inolosed within a chamber which will prevent access of atmosphere to the iron ore under treatment.

Any form of apparatus may be used in carrying out the invention,provided it possesses a perforated grate and a substantially-closed working-chamber provided with charging and working doors.

The apparatus shown in the drawing I have found useful for the purpose, as it can be used with a coke or a graphitic carbon permeable bed, and the carbonic oxide can be generated in said bed by the natural draft alone, or gas and a forced draft or blast can be employed, if gas can be conveniently -obtained or it is desirable to work very rapidly.

In the drawing, A indicates the walls of the ash pit or chamber beneath the grate or perforated bottom B of the working-chamber. This pit should be provided with a series of doors 0, sufficient in number and size to give all the natural draft which may be necessary, but arranged so as to be tightly closed when it is desired to convert the space below grate B into a closed chamber. Into said space below grate B delivers a blast-pipe, D, which can be used as occasion demands, and just below the grate is arranged a gas-delivery pipe, E, both pipes D and E being provided with suitable Valves for controlling the gas and air.

F indicates the reducing-chamber over the grate covered by a suitable crown, G, which is preferably placed low to confine the heat and limit the height of the reducing-chamber. The working-chamber F is provided with a series of working-doors, H H, through which the charge can be introduced and the sponge withdrawn, and also with a flue or uptake, K, for the escape of waste products. The flue K may be provided with a suitable damper or other means for regulating the pressure in the reducing-chamber.

In carrying out my process I arrange on the perforated bottom or grate-bars a bed, 1, of carbon, in lump form, so as to be readily permeable by a current or blast. This bed or stratum 1 may be composed of lumps of coke or lumps of graphitic carbon, such as is found at Oranston, Rhode Island, and in other localities, and its depth will in a measure depend upon whether it is to supply the carbonic oxide for conducting the process or whether it is to simply form a carbonaceous support for the ore to be treated. If it is to supply the carbonic oxide and the heat for conducting the process, a layer of kindling is placed beneath it,.and the layer of carbon lumps (1) is made at least twelve (12) or fifteen (15) inches thick, a draft from the pit below is started and the layer or bed 1 urged into a high state of incandescence.

If graphitic carbon is used for the bed and is to be depended on as the source of heat and carbonic oxide, it will be found desirable to use the blast through D until thorough incandescence has been established.

If the bed-layer 1 is only depended on to support the iron ore under treatment, and not as a source of heat and carbonic oxide-as, for instance, where natural or producer gas is used-then said layer 1 need not be more than five (5) or eight (8) inches thick.

Upon-the carbonaceous bed 1, when properly ignited, I spread a layer, 2, of granulated iron ore and some thirty (30) to forty (40) per cent. of granulated graphitic carbon, said layer to be from four (4) to six (6) inches thick and evenly spread upon the carbonaceous bottom -1, which can be readily done through the working-doors H H. The first effect of the charge of iron ore, 850., on the mcandescent bed 1 is to dampen the same and reduce combustion to a low condition, so that care must be had by the use of the natural draft through the pit-doors C C or by means of blast D to maintain the incandescent condition of bed 1 and insure a sufficient volume of heated carbonic oxide or equivalent gaseous heat'conveying products.

By the regulation of the draft and blast a constant current of heated gases from the bed 1 are caused to pass through the stratum 53 of granulated iron ore and granulated graphitic carbon, so that the reduction of the iron ore can be carried on Very rapidly and perfectly. As soon as reduction of the ore is complete and there is a tendency to agglutination of the particles the charge can be balled and withdrawn through the working-doors Ii 1-[ and a fresh stratum or charge spread on the carbonaceous bed, and the process be thus continuously practiced.

The advantages arising from the process herein described are, first, the simplicity and inexpensiveness of the plant required; second, the ability to dispense with skilled labor, and, third, the shortening of the time required for the deoxidation, whereby the output will equal, if not exceed, the output of the present methods, which require more expensive plants.

Havin g thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s-

1. The method herein described for reducing ores, which consists in subjecting a single layer or stratum of granulated iron ore and granulated graphitic carbon intermingled, arranged on a permeable carbonaceous bedlayer and contained in a closed chamber, to the action of highly-heated currents of car bonic oxide, which currents pass up from the carbonaceous bed-layer into and through the stratum of iron ore and reducing agent, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

2. The process of reducing iron ores, which consists in arranging a single stratum of mixed granulated carbon and granulated iron ore upon a permeable bed-layer of graphitic carbon alone, and passing heated currents of carbonic oxide through the interposed per meable bed-layer of carbon and into and through the stratum of mixed carbon and ore, substantially as and for the purposes specifled.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses, this 19th day of January, 188.).

, CHARLES J. EAMES.

\Vitnesscs:

E. 'l. \VALKER, 1*. R. Conn WALL. 

